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The Brand Champions 2019

Succeeding at the million-case end of the spirits world can be cut-throat. Which brands climbed closer to the top of the food chain and which fell prey to political, economic and cultural strife? Compiled by The Spirits Business editorial team.

These are our Brand Champions for 2019

Strength and speed are vital traits needed to survive in the animal kingdom. It’s a merciless environment where the strong prey on the weak, and those who stand still for too long leave themselves open to attack.

The survival skills needed to succeed in the spirits industry are similar to those of the animal world. Longevity depends on outsmarting your competitors and being fleet of foot when responding to consumer-­driven trends and macroeconomic changes.

There was no shortage of challenges for spirits leaders in 2018. From political and economic turmoil in Venezuela, to international trade wars and the ongoing uncertainty regarding Brexit, brands have had their fair share of storms to weather.

These factors, and more, were considered while compiling our annual Brand Champions report, to assess the full impact political, economic and cultural shifts have had on million-­case­-selling spirits brands.

All the data was independently sourced by The Spirits Business team, who then analysed the findings to reveal which brands went up, which came down, and which were stagnant. As always, a Brand Champion was then chosen for each category, based not just on sales figures and size, but also on factors such as innovation and marketing initiatives.

The 2019 champions span international sensations that appear year on year, but there was only one newcomer to the million­-case ranks this year. On the flip side, one brand slipped below the million-­case mark, joining the handful of spirits sitting just below the milestone threshold.

See the adjacent column to discover the spirits that sold more than 1m cases last year, as well as The Brand Champions 2019 of each individual category.

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